UPDATE 1-Barrick Gold beats quarterly profit estimates, announces $1 bln share buyback
(Adds shares, background and details in paragraphs 2,3,4. Revises profit estimate figure in paragraph 5 to reflect updated LSEG data)
Feb 14 (Reuters) - Canadian miner Barrick Gold beat analysts' estimates for fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday, helped by robust gold production and higher prices. U.S.-listed shares of the company rose nearly 3% in premarket trade after the company also announced a new share repurchase program of up to $1 billion.
Average spot gold prices rose more than 13% in the quarter on a softer dollar and hopes that the U.S. Federal Reserve would cut interest rates this year.
Barrick's quarterly gold production rose 1.4% to 1.05 million ounces while the average realized price per ounce increased 3% to $1,986, from the previous quarter.
The company reported an adjusted profit of 27 cents per share for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared with the analysts' average estimate of 21 cents, according to LSEG data. (Reporting by Tanay Dhumal in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
